


Courting with claws

by Pumpkinnight120



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alpha Paul Rovia, Alpha Rick, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff and Humor, Good Sibling Merle Dixon, Judith is adorable, M/M, Omega Daryl Dixon, Omega Merle Dixon, Paul Rovia is a smart ass, Rickyl Writers' Group, Smoking, Uncle Merle Dixon, Wolf Shifters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:00:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26571820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pumpkinnight120/pseuds/Pumpkinnight120
Summary: How Paul Rovia a smart mouthed Alpha wins the heart of a tough Omega Merle.
Relationships: Daryl Dixon/Rick Grimes, Merle Dixon/Paul Rovia
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	1. Chapter 1

A brown and grey brindled wolf padded out of the thick forest, a large duffle bag hanging from his mouth.

Dodging abandoned cars and walkers the wolf made it's way safely to the gates of Alexandria. 

Standing in front of the gate the wolf let out a loud bark as the gate slid open. The wolf then trotted inside and disappeared behind a van. 

Daryl Dixon appeared from behind it, barefoot and wearing nothing but a pair of jeans when Rick showed up beside him. 

"How was the run?". 

Daryl pulled his shirt on over his head "good. Found a bunch of canned stuff an' some medicine. Plus this". 

Reaching into a backpack Daryl pulled out a couple of tennis balls and a tug rope. 

Rick quirked an eyebrow "what's all that for?". 

"Is' for the pack, figured if we ever get bored we got somethin' ta play with".

Rick chuckled "always thinkin' bout' our inner dog aren't you?".

Daryl nodded "yep". 

Picking up the duffle bag Daryl set off down the street.

\------------------------------

Merle Dixon woke up on a particularly cold and foggy morning. Standing outside on his front porch he was about to light his usual morning cigarette when his niece Judith came bounding up the stairs a green fuzzy tennis ball in her gloved hands.

"Hi Uncle Merle wanna play?".

Merle put away his unlit cigarette and shrugged "I don' know Lil' A I've got ten minutes before guard duty so let's make it a quick one". 

Judith waited on the porch as her Uncle disappeared into the house and reappeared as a beautiful brown colored wolf.

Merle wagged his tail as Judith held up the tennis ball "ready?". 

A happy bark was his reply.

"Ok, go get it boy!" And Judith threw the ball down the street watching as the wolf sprinted after it. 

Merle returned trotting happily as he dropped the ball nudging it toward his niece's feet. 

The two played like this for a good five minutes before Merle had to start his shift on the guard tower. He'd been an hour into his shift when Daryl called him down.

"Hey Mer, ya almost done?".

Merle shook his head "naw, got another ten minutes. Why?".

"When yer done let's go huntin', wanna stock up before winter". 

Merle grinned "sounds like a plan I'll see ya after". 

Ten minutes later the two brothers set out for the woods for one last hunt before winter. 

\-----------------------------

A mottled cream colored wolf watched the two men from the safety of a gallberry bush. Sniffing the air he caught the scents of both of them as his ears perked up with interest.

Wagging his tail the wolf resisted the urge to greet the two men. People were such a rarity these days that meeting anyone could be risky.

So the wolf stayed in his spot, hidden within the greenery of the shrubbery patiently waiting for them to move on.

Once he was sure they were gone the wolf moved on silent paws out of his hiding place. Putting his nose to the ground the wolf silently followed the two humans. 

\---------------------------

Merle and Daryl kept getting the strange feeling that they were being followed. Glancing behind them they'd looked just in time to see a cream colored tail poking out from behind a boulder.

Hackles up both brothers pointed their weapons in the direction of the boulder.

"Hey! We know yer there, come on out now!" Yelled Daryl.

"Come out nice an' slow" said Merle. 

The wolf crept out from behind the boulder slowly and shifted on the spot. The man was short in stature and slightly muscular with long brown hair and blue eyes.

He was also completely naked. 

"Why the hell ya followin' us?" Asked Daryl keeping his crossbow level with the man's head.

"You guys seem like good people, people I could use for my community".

Merle quirked an eyebrow "really? Now wha' makes ya' think that? Or do ya' got some other bullshit reason?".

The man sighed "alright, I'll confess. I followed you to see if you'd be good candidates for my community but I also was following because" and he looked at Merle as he said this "I think your cute".

Merle lowered his gun and burst into laughter. 

Reaching into his backpack Daryl tossed the small man a robe " 'ere cover yerself up".

Regaining his composer Merle tied the small man's hands together "alright you, walk". 

With their hunt ruined the three headed back to Alexandria.


	2. Chapter 2

Daryl entered the basement cell to find the man back in wolf form, curled up on the floor asleep. 

With the toe of his boot Daryl nudged the wolf awake.

"Hey, wake up. We need ta' talk".

The wolf then got up yawned, stretched into a perfect downward facing dog, sat down and gave a look of pure doggy disgust.

Daryl's brow furrowed "don't give me that look, now shift back ta' human, I ain't talkin' ta' a wolf". 

The wolf in question growled at him.

Pulling a spray bottle from his back pocket Daryl sprayed the wolf in the face.

Stunned the wolf fell backwards and shifted on the spot. 

"No growlin' " said Daryl tossing the spray bottle aside "ya ready ta' talk now?".

The man sat up and wrinkled his nose "really? jalapeno water?".

Daryl nodded "yep yer lucky it wasn't liquid silver or yer face would be burnin'. So ya ready ta' talk?".

The man nodded.

Daryl grabbed a chair and sat down in front of him "alright, I'm listening".

"My name's Paul Rovia I'm a scout and supply runner for my community called the Hilltop. I need your help, our leader got into some trouble with a group calling themselves the Saviors". 

Daryl nodded prompting him to continue.

"The Saviors demanded half our resources to be given to their leader, Negan, for the price of not attacking or destroying our community. Our leader Gregory of course made the deal, but ended up killing a kid to make their motives clear".

Since then, half our supplies go to the Saviors". 

Daryl leaned back in his chair "so whatcha wan' us ta do?".

"Talk some sense into Gregory, convince him the Saviors are bad news. I want to talk to your leader to see if our two groups can't come together in an alliance". 

Daryl got up from his chair "I'll talk ta' Rick an' see if he won't meet with ya' ".

He was about to leave when Paul spoke again "can you introduce me to the guy you were with earlier?". 

Daryl paused mid step "who Merle? Why?". 

"I like him and want to get to know him".

Daryl rolled his eyes "yeah keep dreaming". 

And with that Daryl left.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning for past self harm.

The two sat at the kitchen table. The silence between the two of them was almost unbearable. Rick's conversation with the scout an hour earlier had gone well and was looking forward to a future alliance.

Paul fidgeted in his seat, unsure of what to say. Clearing his throat he said "I wanted to apologize for ruining your hunt a few days ago. I know that doesn't mean much but I want you to know that I'm truly sorry."

Daryl got up and leaned over on the table, both hands planted on either side accentuating his already broad shoulders and while that would have normally put any Alpha on their knees this particular one seemed to be immune to Daryl's charms.

"An' wha' the hell makes ya think I'd want ta' do anythin' with you?". 

Paul hung his head "I know I screwed up and I'm sorry. Please Daryl let me make it up to you and your brother". 

The omega let out an exasperated sigh "alright fine, what'd ya have in mind?". 

\---------------------------

The drive to North Carolina was uneventful. After staying the night in Richmond the three continued on until they reached a small beach town. 

The small seaside town of Corolla yielded a few shops and as the three searched the small pharmacy Paul tried to drum up a conversation with the two brothers.

"So are you guys originally from Virginia?".

Daryl shook his head "no, we're from Georgia".

"Lived in a small town in the mountains fer a while then moved ta' Senoia" said Merle as he picked up and checked bottle labels and compared them to the list of meds in his hand. 

"I was born in Virginia. Moved from one foster home to another after my parents died in a car crash when I was five" Paul stuffed a box of band-aids and a bag of cotton balls into a backpack as he spoke.

"I'm sorry ta' 'ere that, Merle an' I lost our parents too so we know how ya feel" said Daryl sincerely, patting Paul's shoulder. 

Heading toward the back of the pharmacy Merle shined his flashlight on a couple of shelves behind the counter. 

"So watchu do before all this Paul?" Asked Merle as he tried the door for the back room but found it to be locked. 

"I was an art teacher for the University of Virginia, before that I was an art major student at the same University. What about you two?". 

"I was in the army as a wheeled vehicle mechanic. I served fer six years before losing part of ma' left leg to an' IED". 

Paul's eyes widened in surprise "I'm sorry that happened that must have been very traumatic for you." 

Merle nodded "it was but Rick an' Daryl helped me through the ruff stuff. After that I went back ta' school, got an engineering degree. Ended up workin' at an auto garage". 

"Daryl did the same thing, minus the army" said Merle gesturing to his brother. 

The rest of the scavenging went off without incident. And as the three rested briefly outside their van Merle had removed his blue flannel over shirt, tossing it onto his seat. Paul who happened to be looking as he took a drink of water from a canteen was shocked by what he saw. 

\----------------------------

The whole world seemed to freeze as Paul saw the marks on Merle's inner forearms and wrists. 

Merle quirked a confused eyebrow "what?". 

Paul swallowed a hard lump "where'd you get those scars?".

Merle looked at where he was pointing and immediately got up and walked to the front passenger seat of the van and put his flannel back on, Paul following close behind. 

"Merle we need to talk about what I just saw". 

Merle grabbed a pack of cigarettes from the front pocket of his flannel and pointed a finger at Paul's face "don't. Ya saw nothin' " and started to walk away. 

Paul followed Merle a short distance from the van, keeping him in a sight at all times until Merle wheeled around and shouted "stop followin' me!".

"Merle I can't, if you're-" but Paul was cut off by Merle dropping his half finished cigarette to the pavement and putting it out with the toe of his boot. Hanging his head Merle fought back the urge to cry. 

"The scars are old, from a long time ago. 'bout three years before the world went ta' shit". 

"Does Daryl know?".

Merle nodded wiping his cheek on his sleeve "he's the one who found me, got me help when I needed it. I owe a lot ta' ma' brother". 

Paul stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the crying man "thank you for telling me and I'm sorry I scared you". 

Merle returned Paul's embrace, his tears slowly subsiding "I's okay, thank you fer listening".

\--------------------------

A few minutes later as Paul and Merle headed back to the van Daryl took the scout aside. 

"Hey, I saw what happened an' I wanna thank you fer comforting him".

"Will he be okay?" Asked Paul still concerned.

Daryl nodded and gave a small smile "cause of you, I know he'll be".


	4. Chapter 4

Merle kicked a pebble across the courtyard, smoking the last dregs of his cigarette. 

Sitting himself on a picnic table he puts his head in his hands and tries to shake away the nightmare that was the last few hours. 

He lifts his head as the medical trailer's door opens, turning away when he realizes it wasn't Sasha. 

Paul sits next to Merle on his left side "Maggie's going to be okay, Dr. Carson says she'll have to stay here and be off her feet until the baby's born". 

Paul's brow furrows "Merle are you okay?". 

Sighing Merle gets up and starts walking away with Paul not far behind him. 

"Merle please, talk to me. Don't push me away". 

Merle turns to face the shorter man, his eyes shining with unshed tears. 

"Tell me what happened". 

\-------------------------

And he does. Merle tells Paul everything, from the blocked roads to Hilltop to being ambushed by close to fifty men in a clearing in the woods.

The encounter with Negan and the deaths of Abraham and Glenn hit Merle the hardest, leaving him an emotional mess in Paul's arms.

"Now we work fer 'em, givin' half our stuff ta' that asshole. Rick of course wants his revenge, says he's gonna kill 'em. Can't say I blame 'em". 

Paul lays a hand on Merle's forearm causing the older man to flinch. 

"I take it this isn't the only thing that's been bothering you". 

Merle lets out a shakey breath.

"Are you still upset at me for seeing the scars on your wrists?".

"Paul, I don't know what ya see in me but I can never be the man ya deserve. I'm broken Paul, no one loves a broken man". 

Paul takes Merle by the shoulders, turning him so they're both face to face "but I do". 

"We may have only known each other for a few months but I can tell you right now, you are in no way broken".

"I love you Merle, let me be the man you deserve, like you are for me".

Merle wipes his face on his sleeve as the tears begin to fall "but what if I'm still broken?". 

Paul pulls Merle into his arms "then I guess we'll just have to be broken together".


	5. Three months later

Merle rubbed at the crescent- shaped bond mark on his left clavicle and smiled. He felt as if he was floating in a really good dream and that he'd wake up if he pinched himself hard enough. 

Leaving the bathroom he picked up his towel and chuckled as he dried himself off, Merle's mind thinking back to the day Paul asked to court him. 

It was a very old shifter tradition and Merle remembered it like it was yesterday. He and Paul had been on a supply run when the scout spotted a rabbit running behind a bush.

Shifting quickly Paul ran after it, returning ten minutes later with his tail wagging and a mouthful of rabbit, looking as pleased as punch with himself.

The two cuddled later that night, snuggled together as Merle twisted a strand of Paul's hair around his finger. 

He let the memory float around in his head as he finished dressing. Securing his prosthesis to his lower leg Merle stood up and glanced at himself in the bedrooms mirror. 

And for the first time Merle no longer felt broken.


End file.
